Carlos Alcaraz gets another win over Sinner and his ‘second father’ | Tennis | Sport
Carlos Alcaraz and Jannik Sinner cemented their dominance in 2025, continuing to set themselves apart from the rest of the pack. They shared the four Grand Slam titles and the No. 1 ranking, though it was Alcaraz who secured the year-end No. 1 position in a fierce battle that went down to the last tournament of the year.
The young champions faced each other six times on the tour this season, including in three Grand Slam finals. Alcaraz won four of the matches, though one came via retirement when Sinner fell ill during the Cincinnati Open final. And the Spanish superstar has now capped off the year with another victory over his biggest rival.
Alcaraz’s coaches, Juan Carlos Ferrero and Samuel Lopez, have won the ATP’s Coach of the Year award. They beat out Sinner’s team of Darren Cahill and Simone Vagnozzi, as well as Benjamin Balleret, Frederic Fontang, and Bryan Shelton – the coaches of Valentin Vacherot, Felix Auger-Aliassime, and Ben Shelton.
The award is voted on by fellow coaches, and Ferrero becomes the first coach to pick up the accolade multiple times. He also won in 2022 for his work with Alcaraz. Lopez joined Alcaraz’s team at the beginning of the season, but had helped them out in the past. He’s known Ferrero since the former world No. 1 was a child, and spent years working at Ferrero’s academy.
“I’m so happy with the award. I was in no doubt that Samuel would fit our working philosophy really well, because we’ve been working together for many years and he knows exactly what I want for Carlos. He’s done great work from the start,” Ferrero told the ATP.
Lopez added: “Everything was easy, because the results came. I’ve known Juan Carlos since he was 10 years old, and Carlos since he took his first steps at the Academy.”
Alcaraz won eight titles this year and ended the season with a 71-9 win-loss record. Aged just 22, the Spaniard now has six Grand Slam trophies to his name, two of them coming this year at the French Open and US Open. At Roland Garros, he saved three championship points and beat Sinner in a thrilling five-set final.
The world No. 1 has already been recognised in this year’s ATP Awards, picking up the Stefan Edberg Sportsmanship Award for the second time in his career.
Had Cahill and Vagnozzi won, they would have been the first coaches to pick up the award multiple times following their nod in 2023. And it could have been Cahill’s last chance for recognition.
At the beginning of 2025, Sinner confirmed that this would be Cahill’s last year on tour with him. But after he won Wimbledon, Sinner jokingly revealed that he had made a bet with his Australian coach, which meant he could decide whether or not Cahill would stay on next year.
As the end of the season neared, Sinner revealed that they still hadn’t spoken about it, but shed light on his relationship with Cahill. “He is like a second father to me, so I’m happy to have him here. It’s a huge privilege to work with him. We aim for something very positive [for him to stay], and I will need a lot of hope for that,” the world No. 2 told ATP Media ahead of the Vienna Open.
Had it been Cahill’s last season as Sinner’s coach, he would have just missed out on getting his second coaching award with the Italian. But the renowned tennis coach appears to have stayed in Sinner’s team, as they’ve been training in the Middle East – and getting a few rounds of golf in.
